Forum for Theological Exploration: Vibrant, flexible content structure

Description

Background

The Forum for Theological Education (FTE), a leading organization dedicated to fostering excellence in theological education, sought to enhance its digital presence to better engage its diverse audience and streamline its operations. With a multifaceted content strategy spanning multiple channels, the challenge lay in structuring content effectively, achieving a modern aesthetic, and seamlessly integrating third-party platforms such as Salesforce, Mailchimp, and Formstack. In pursuit of these objectives, FTE entrusted us with the task of revitalizing its digital platform.

Approach

Our approach centered on three core pillars: structured content management, modern aesthetic design, and seamless third-party integrations. Firstly, we conducted a comprehensive analysis of FTE's content ecosystem, identifying opportunities to streamline content creation, distribution, and management across various channels. Leveraging this insight, we developed a structured content strategy, employing metadata tagging, taxonomy development, and content modeling to ensure consistency and coherence across all content assets. Secondly, we focused on modernizing the platform's design, incorporating sleek layouts, intuitive navigation, and engaging visuals to enhance user experience and reflect FTE's progressive ethos. Lastly, we prioritized seamless integration with third-party platforms, including Salesforce for CRM integration, Mailchimp for email marketing, and Formstack for form management, to streamline data flow, automate processes, and enhance operational efficiency.

Execution

The execution phase commenced with a collaborative discovery process, where we engaged stakeholders from FTE to align on project objectives, user needs, and technical requirements. Drawing on insights gathered, our team embarked on the design and development of the digital platform, employing agile methodologies to ensure flexibility and responsiveness to evolving needs. Through iterative prototyping and user testing, we refined the user interface, optimizing for intuitive navigation, accessibility, and cross-device compatibility. Concurrently, we implemented robust integration solutions, leveraging APIs and custom connectors to seamlessly connect FTE's digital platform with Salesforce, Mailchimp, and Formstack, enabling data synchronization, personalized communications, and streamlined workflow automation.

Results

The launch of FTE's revitalized digital platform marked a significant milestone in its digital transformation journey, yielding tangible benefits in content management, user experience, and operational efficiency. The structured content management approach facilitated centralized content governance, enabling FTE to deliver consistent, relevant, and impactful content across diverse channels. The modern aesthetic design garnered praise from users, enhancing engagement and reinforcing FTE's brand identity as a forward-thinking organization. Furthermore, the seamless integration with Salesforce, Mailchimp, and Formstack empowered FTE to leverage data-driven insights, automate marketing campaigns, and streamline administrative processes, driving greater efficiency and effectiveness in achieving its mission of advancing theological education. Overall, FTE's enhanced digital platform positioned it as a leader in the field, equipped to adapt and thrive in an increasingly digital-centric landscape.